Tag: Finance Minister

Indian companies will soon be permitted to directly list securities overseas, says Finance Minister

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The government has decided to allow domestic companies to list overseas to help them access capital from the world markets, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Friday. Sitharaman said she had in May 2020 announced the move as part of the Covid-19 relief package, and added that a decision to go ahead with the proposal has been taken now.

“The government has taken a decision to enable direct listing of listed and unlisted companies on the IFSC exchanges,” Sitharaman said, speaking at an event organised by capital markets regulator SEBI. Terming this as a “major step”, Sitharaman said this will help facilitate access to global capital and also get better valuations.

A senior finance ministry official said the government will notify the rules in the next few weeks. Initially, companies will be allowed to list at the International Financial Services Centre in GIFT City, Ahmedabad, and later, companies can list in any of the eight to nine specified overseas jurisdictions, the official said.

Currently, overseas listings by domestically-listed entities are carried out through American Depository Receipts (ADRs) and Global Depository Receipts (GDRs), which companies like Infosys and Wipro have done. Some companies like Makemytrip have chosen to list in exchanges like Nasdaq abroad.

The new policy allowing direct overseas listing could be a shot in the arm for unicorns or startups valued at more than USD 1 billion, and the digital unit of conglomerate Reliance, which is eyeing a US listing after raising more than USD 20 billion from investors such as KKR, Google and Facebook. The finance ministry official cited past instances of companies going abroad for listing, and added that this is an alternative given to investors.

Also Read: India prohibits export of de-oiled rice bran after non-basmati white rice

For the direct overseas listing framework, an enabling provision would be made under the Companies Act, 2013. Sitharaman is also in charge of the corporate affairs ministry, which is implementing the companies law.

However, an investment banker wondered about the need for such a move now, pointing out that the domestic capital market with a market capitalisation of USD 4 trillion are strong and liquid enough to take care of any company’s capital requirements. Earlier, media reports said the government was considering allowing foreign listings in seven countries initially, including Britain, Canada, Switzerland and the US.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had previously recommended a framework within which such direct listing will be facilitated, and it is expected that the Sebi framework will be the basis for future regulation in this area. Sebi had proposed allowing listings on stock exchanges in ten “permissible jurisdictions” with strong anti-money laundering regulations, including the NYSE, Nasdaq, the LSE and Hong Kong, along with other major exchanges in Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, Switzerland and Canada.

Sitharaman made the announcement about the direct overseas listing of domestic companies while speaking at an event to launch a corporate debt market development fund, which is a bailout facility for debt funds.

Also Read: Power sector’s hope for improvement: Examining progress with experts

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

India to consider PLI scheme for chemicals and petrochemicals sector, says finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Centre is considering the production-linked incentives (PLI) scheme for the chemicals and petrochemicals sector, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday, July 27.

She was speaking Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry’s (FICCI) Global Chemicals and Petrochemicals Manufacturing Hub (GCPMH) 2023.

The finance minister said the potential and size of the chemicals and petrochemicals industry makes a big impact on the economy. She urged the sector to adopt industry 4.0 in a “big way” and also addressed how controlling pollution still remains a challenge. “We will also consider the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for chemicals and petrochemical sector,” she said.

Sitharaman aid the sector has an impact on other sectors as well such as agriculture, textile, infrastructure, among others. She said it needs to adopt industry 4.0 in a big way, adding that the government has not regulated this industry except for hazardous chemicals. She said the speciality chemical market represents 32 percent of the overall chemical sector.

The Finance Minister also stressed on focusing on production in India. She said the export values from the industry have increased by 2 percent from last year, but imports are also increasing. “Many of these imports can be produced in India as well,” she said.

Another challenge was pollution control. “India has set its sight on becoming net zero by 2030 and for that the carbon intensity has to be reduced,” she said.

Sitharaman said the chemicals and petrochemicals industry needs to keep India’s green initiatives and commitments in sight and contribute to the same. She said global firms are looking to tie up with Indian companies. “I would urge the industry to focus on sustainability and India’s national commitment towards the environment,” the finance minister added.

Also Read: The era of agritech: Will it make India a farming powerhouse?

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Tax revenues soar despite unchanged rates — govt credits technology and compliance

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday (July 14) revealed that even though tax rates haven’t gone up in the last 3-4 years, the government has collected more tax money (revenue). They gave credit to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) for reducing tax cheating and using technology to make tax assessments easier.

“Prime Minister has been clear that technology is the answer to most problems and CBDT has worked on that,” she said.

The government also helped small and mid-sized businesses by introducing a helpful law called Section 43(B) of the income tax act. Startups got relief too, making India a popular place for new businesses to start.

The new tax system also means that if someone earns up to 7 lakh 27 thousand rupees, they don’t have to pay any income tax. She also noted that around 1 lakh income tax notices were sent and that all will be cleared by March 2024, providing relief to those who received them.

The Finance Minister promised that they are working hard to make taxes less complicated and more friendly for everyone.

Additionally, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra said that the government has been doing well in collecting taxes, except for the challenging time when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. “Tax bouyoncy has been at least 1 percent in all years expect the covid years in the last six years.” 

Malhotra also mentioned that the time it takes to process tax returns has become faster, helping taxpayers get their refunds sooner.

“The average return processing has come down an average of 16 days,” he added.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Banks must do more credit outreach, can use artificial intelligence to increase efficiency: Nirmala Sitharaman

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 1 urged banks to not lose momentum and not look the other way from efficiency. She said banks must follow best corporate governance practices and adhere to regulatory norms.

Lenders must ensure proper liquidity management and maintain robust asset liability risk management, the minister said while inaugurating the corporate office of Punjab & Sind Bank in New Delhi.

She also highlighted that the Indian economy has moved away from the twin-balance sheet problem of banks and corporates to twin-balance sheet advantage because of the concerted efforts of the Modi government. The twin-balance sheet problem refers to deterioration in financial health of banks and corporates at the same time.

Profit of public sector banks increased to Rs 1.04 lakh crore in 2022-23, tripling from what it was in 2014, she said.

“As a result [of various initiatives of the government] I’m glad to say the problems of twin-balance sheets have gone away like the Reserve Bank observing it is a twin-balance sheet advantage that the Indian economy is benefiting from,” Sitharaman said.

Sitharman told banks that stand-up and start-up India schemes need to be supported and that banks should also give prominence to Mahilaa Bachat Patra. She requested banks to approach more women to avail of the Mahila Savings Scheme.

Also Read: Nirmala Sitharaman slams former President Barack Obama’s remarks, says US bombed six Muslim countries

The minister also requested banks to ensure that priority sector lending happens. “Banks should do credit outreach…We need to be present in the border states and cities as well,” she said.

Banks must ensure records and systems are all digitised, they can also use artificial intelligence to increase efficiencies, she said. She also advised lenders to have drills and adequate firewalls for digital safety.

Also Read: Financial influencers a growing concern in India, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Budget allocation for energy security and transition is not a subsidy, says finance minister

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The money allotted to energy security and transition is not a subsidy, which is being given indirectly, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday. “There are two objectives of allocating this money: To make a transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy and to make sure that our strategic reserves are all filled up adequately,” she said.

The Finance Minister in her Budget speech earlier this month, had announced Rs 35,000 crore for priority capital investment towards energy transition and net zero objectives and energy security by the ministry of petroleum and natural gas.

“The 35,000 crore for oil companies for FY24 is not subsidy — it’s for transition to green energy from fossil fuel,” she said.

Reiterating the same, Finance Secretary TV Somanathan said the 35,000 crore given for the energy security and transition is to enable public sector oil company refineries to be upgraded to reduce their emissions to meet India’s ambitious green targets. He added that there was an enhanced petroleum subsidy in the revised estimates of this Budget.

On MGNREGA allocation in the Budget

Talking about the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme(MGNREGA), Sitharaman said that the allocation has not gone down. She said that it is demand driven and as and when the demand increases, the Centre provides money.

“We have added some more in the revised estimates for MNREGA, it’s fully provided for,” she said.

In the Union Budget 2023, the government slashed the allocation for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme(MGNREGA) to Rs 60,000 crore, the lowest in the past four years. When compared to Rs 73000 crore allocation in the budget estimate (BE) of 2022-2023 the current allocation is 17.8 percent less.

Also Read: Centre is making a lot of efforts to regularise the economy, TDS is a part of it: FM

Sitharaman on Friday said that the Budget for MNREGA is fully-utilised by the end of the year and it develops as the demand increases. “This is a very clear strategy which we have adopted,” she said.

On wheat and rice procurement

Talking about the procurement of wheat and rice, the Finance Minister said that the government has not brought it down at all.

She said the total amount given to the farmers is very high as the minimum selling price has gone up. “The total amount spent on procurement is at an all-time high now. You can be sure there is no coming down in these figures,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Finance Secretary said that apart from the ongoing programmes of PM Kisan Yojna, the agricultural accelerator fund actually helps the marginal farmer.

Talking about dealing with inflation, he said that the RBI and Centre are taking the necessary steps. “The government has been intervening in the market to control inflation, it has received tremendous attention throughout the year with concerted action,” he said, adding that fertliser prices for farmers were unchanged with zero inflation.

On Adani-Hindenburg row

When being asked about the exposure of public sector banks to Adani Group companies, in light of the Hindenburg row, the Finance Minister said that the SBI had already given a statement on its exposure. “You have heard it from the horse’s mouth,” she said.

Earlier this month, SBI Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara had said that the bank’s lending to Adani group companies are only to projects that are tangible assets and have good cash flow and so it was not worried about stock market volatility.

The Adani Group has been focus ever since the short seller Hindenburg Research report’s allegations against it.

She also said that the SEBI does not report each and every matter to the Centre. “The matter is being heard via PLA in court today, so maybe it’s not right for me to comment,” she said.

The Supreme Court has rejected the government’s move to submit suggestions on an expert panel in a sealed envelope and said that it will appoint a panel itself in connection with the case relating to the rout of Adani stocks following the scathing Hindenburg report.

On divestment

Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), said the Centre’s divestment aim follows a calibrated strategy and “we do not want to distort the market. Divestment aim should be realistic.”

Earlier this month, the Finance Minister had said the Centre’s commitment to privatisation remains as strong as ever and it is just a question of timing when the state-owned companies that are in the pipeline for divestment would be put out.

Also Read: Ready to act against imports that can hurt India, says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Centre is making a lot of efforts to regularise the economy, TDS is a part of it: FM

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said tax deducted at source (TDS) is a not a new tax. She said the government is making a lot of efforts to regularise the economy, the TDS is a way of doing that. She added that the industry should not have a problem with TDS.

“I would appeal to all of you, when you are talking about tax, particularly TDS., you are in the field for long time. I appeal to all of you to please explain the motive as to why we have TDS and TCS objectives. they are not new tax. The government is doing a lot to promote the industry, but we are also wanting to formulaise the economy,” she said.

The Finance Minister was addressing industry stakeholders in Hyderabad, Telangana on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Finance Secretary TV Somanathan said the government is not proposing to issue foreign currency denominated sovereign government securities. He said there are some benefits of foreign currency-denominated sovereign government securities, but there are some negatives as well.

He said India is open to foreign money portfolio investments in rupee-denominated securities.

On certification of startups, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra said the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is aware that the process via the inter-ministerial board is taking time.

He said the DPIIT has increased the number of boards to 10 folds from around two months ago. “We have started to see results of faster certification of startups,” he said, adding that the government is very keen that the startup ecosystem keeps being promoted.

Also Read: Ready to act against imports that can hurt India, says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Ready to act against imports that can hurt India, says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said that the government is ready to act against imports that can hurt India’s interests. “An import surge of even three months can hurt us for an entire year. We are keeping a close eye on imports and exports,” she said.

India’s exports in January declined by 6.5 percent, while the trade deficit was the lowest in 12 months. Imports also declined by 3.6 percent. The Finance Minister, while addressing industry bodies on Wednesday, warned that a recession and a slowdown in the global economy will be a challenge for Indian exporters going forward. “External shocks are possible and we should be prepared. We do keep ourselves some buffer to deal with external shocks”, she said.

In response to questions from the industry on whether cost of foreign borrowings would go up, Sitharaman confirmed that from July 1, 2023, relief on foreign borrowings will not be available.

The Finance Minister reiterated that the government was looking at sustaining growth with fiscal consolidation. “We are completely aligning ourselves with the fiscal roadmap. We are fiscally responsiblem,” she said.

Talking about the 10 lakh crore capital allocation in the Budget, Sitharaman said that increasing public capital expenditure has been a priority and this will have a multiplier effect across sectors and core industries. “For the first time, we have reached a double-digit amount for capex, this is the real focus of the Budget,” she said.

The FM said that MSMEs continue to be a major focus area for the government as they are the backbone of the economy. She urged the industry to make payments to MSMEs within 45 days.

Also Read: States need to agree and Council must decide to bring petroleum products under GST, says finance minister

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

States need to agree and Council must decide to bring petroleum products under GST, says finance minister

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said that the window for petroleum products to be brought into the GST gambit is already open, but it is up tp the states to agree and for the GST Council to decide.

“My predecessor had already kept the window open. Once the states agree, we will have the petroleum products also covered by  GST. It is not so much of us (the Centre) not wanting it, it is the entire GST Council saying yes. They have to determine a rate and then we get it into the GST,” she said.

The Finance Minister was speaking at a post-Budget session at the PHD Chambers.

She also answered another question on edtech and said the government is committed to the cause of digitising education.

“The last Budget announced a digital university. This Budget has also announced Artificial Intelligence in three centres of excellence on digital and also making it available and to keep abreast of anything that is required in AI, to not be behind the curve, but to push ahead with the good advantage that India has with technology,” she said.

Sitharaman said from the government’s side, there is no hesitation. “We are pushing ahead. We see it as a very important and big component of future education,” she said, adding that there could be a gap, in terms of rural India not being able to afford tablets for each student.

Also Read: GST compensation delayed for some states due to lack of accountant general’s certificate: FM

She said the government had announced that if students were missing classes they could use any of the 200 dedicated channels in the Doordarshan bouquet, which will be in each language according to the state they are using it in. The channels are available to teach for each class, each subject. “We are committed and dedicated to the cause of digitising education, in the sense of using digital tools for education. That will continue,” she added.

Sitharaman in her opening remarks gave a gist of the 2023-24 Budget and said the target was to give momentum to growth. “I can go on with every paragraph of the Budget, but largely we are looking at sustaining growth through capital expenditure, not forgetting inclusion, not forgetting the necessity to keep our youth ready for job markets. But all this, with fiscal consolidation,” she said.

She said the fiscal consolidation for which the government had given a road map, they are completely aligning themselves with it. “If anything I must credit the entire ministry for ensuring that we were able to give a Budget which is fiscally responsible but very clear on the target that is growth has to be given the momentum. That is how I can summarise the Budget,” she said.

Also Read: Govt doesn’t need to give inducements, says FM Sitharaman on new tax regime

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Finance Minister says she allocated more money than received under health and education cess

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the Centre has allocated way more to states than the health and education cess that collected from them.

She said she was replying to NCP PM Supriya Sule’s question on where all the health and education cess goes?

Giving out the allocation outlay since the 2020-21 fiscal, she said Rs 35,821 crore cess was collected, and Rs 57,029 crore was given to the education ministry and Rs 18494 crore to the health ministry. The total cess spent on states was Rs 69,228 crore, which was more than what was collected.

Similarly, in the previous fiscal, Rs 52,732 crore in health and education cess was collected, while the education ministry was given Rs 56,788 crore and the health ministry was allocated Rs 25,000 crore. The states were allocated Rs 81,788 crore, which was again more than the cess collected.

While the figures for the ongoing fiscal aren’t out yet, according to Budget Estimates, Rs 62,500 crore was the expected health and education cess and the Centre is expecting to give states Rs 86,100 crore.

A total of 1.51 lakh crore cess has been collected, and in return the states have been given Rs 2.37 lakh crore.

The Finance Minister was replying to a series of questions in the Lok Sabha regarding the recent Union Budget. “The members have addressed 15 issues of concerns and I will try to address them,” she said.

Also Read: UP Global Investors’ Summit 2023: PM Modi says businesses should invest in health, education and green growth

She also highlighted that the Budget was presented against the background that India was coming out of a pandemic and keeping in mind other geopolitical factors such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the COVID-19 resurgence in China, which affected supply chains and contributed to the rising inflation. She said the vagaries of extreme weather conditions also triggered food inflation.

The Finance Minister said that since the pandemic, when the economy had dipped, the Centre’s efforts to recover have been via the capital expenditure route by the government’s side, which she said has great multiplier effects, creates jobs, and triggers better income and consumption.

The Finance Minister said she has heard many members say that the Centre is not giving enough to the states. “The total resources transferred to the states — central share in taxes, releases and centrally-sponsored schemes — the proposed Budget Estimate is at Rs 17.98 lakh crore. This is higher by Rs 1.55 lakh crore over the revised estimates for FY23 and by Rs 2.91 lakh than the actual of FY21,” she said.

She added that states will be the partners in the massive capex exercise and in the current Budget, Rs 1.4 lakh crore has been allocated to states as 50-year loans. “The interest of the states has always been kept up and kept in mind,” the Finance Minister said.

During her reply in Parliament, Sitharaman also gave an overview of the recent Budget allocations for the sections the opposition had been raising questions — the middle class, employment, the MSMEs, agriculture and green growth.

Talking about food subsidy specifically, Sitharaman said that the allegation that the Centre is maintaining fiscal consolidation by reducing food subsidy is completely wrong. “From FY16 to FY20, food subsidies were in the range of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh crore. In FY24, the projection for food subsidy is Rs 1.97 lakh crore,”  she said, adding that the increase is due to the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana’s (PMGKAY) Rs 80 crore.

She said in the December allocation of PMGKAY, the Centre would be bearing all costs of the previous operation and no cost would be borne by the state governments.

On December 26, 2022, the Union cabinet decided to allow PMGKAY to sunset, and instead grant free rations for a whole year under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) from January 1, 2023.

While the opposition leaders kept interrupting her and raising further questions and objections, the Finance Minister continued with her answers.

At one point, she also brought up the incident that occurred earlier in the day, when Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot read the old state budget speech for seven minutes, until he was interrupted by the chief whip. She said mistakes can happen by anyone, “but I pray to God no one ever has to reach that stage where they read out the wrong Budget”.

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Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

FM says the process is on to decide on the best possible timing for divestments

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the Centre’s commitment to privatisation remains as strong as ever and it is just a question of timing  when the state-owned companies that are in the pipeline for divestment would be put out.

Sitharaman said preparation time as well as the market performance are two main factors that influence when the divestment proposals are put out. “The process is on for many items,” she said in an interview with Rahul Joshi, Group Editor-In-Chief of Network18,

While the Finance Minister did not mention divestment in her Budget speech on Wednesday, she said it is a part of the Budget documents.

She said the Cabinet has taken a call about the companies that have to be privatised. “So we will, of course, have to see when is the best time for it to be done, given the fact that we have already done the homework and kept it ready to put it out in the market. The preparatory time consumes a lot of time. Post that, we watch out for the market and put it out,” she said.

Meanwhile, a government official told CNBC-TV18 that the Centre’s part sale in Hindustan Zinc as well as other offer-for-sales (OFSs) would help meet the FY23 investment aim of Rs 50,000 crore. The official, however, pointed out that meeting the target is increasingly becoming a challenge.

The FY23 divestment target is pegged at Rs 50,000 crore and the current divestment receipts are at Rs 31,000 crore.

The official said that meeting the FY24 divestment aim of Rs 51,000 crore could be a challenge as the pipeline of minority stake sales are becoming narrow and also there are a lot of externalities involved and the process is cumbersome as well.

The official also said that the Centre may call off the Pawan Hans transaction and a show cause notice has been issued to the winning bidder.

Also Read: FM reacts to SBI & LIC exposure to Adani Group: Both say it is well within permissible limits

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow